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About The FilmRichard Wagner, the German opera composer, was notoriously anti-Semitic; his writings calling for the elimination of the Jews from German life were later embraced by the Nazis. Nonetheless, many of his closest and most devoted supporters were Jewish, which surprised even Wagner himself. These devotees were young musicians who provided crucial help in Wagner’s work and career: the teenaged piano prodigy Carl Tausig; Hermann Levi, a rabbi’s son who conducted the premiere of Wagner’s Parsifal; Angelo Neumann, who produced Wagner’s works throughout Europe; and Joseph Rubinstein, a pianist who lived with the Wagner family for years and committed suicide when Wagner died. What brought them to Wagner, and what brought him to them? Filmed on location in Germany, Switzerland, and Italy, Hilan Warshaw’s documentary tells these remarkable stories through visual re-enactments, interviews, and performances of original musical works by Wagner’s Jewish colleagues, the first such performances on film. In addition, it explores the ongoing controversy over performing Wagner’s music in Israel, and raises questions that still resonate today: is it possible to separate works of art from the bigotry of their creator? Can art transcend the weight of history? Guest SpeakersPanel: "Wagner's Jews?"
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